Marco Polo

Date of Birth: September 15, 1254

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Date of Death: January 8, 1324

Biography

Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant, explorer, and writer, born into a wealthy merchant family in Venice, Italy. His travels are recorded in “The Travels of Marco Polo,” a book that described to Europeans the wealth and vast size of China, its capital Peking (Beijing), and other Asian cities and countries. Polo was one of the first Westerners to travel the Silk Road to China. He traveled extensively with his family, journeying from Europe to Asia between 1271 and 1295, and he remained in China for 17 of those years. Upon his return to Venice, he was captured during a conflict between Venice and Genoa and imprisoned. During his imprisonment, he dictated his stories to a fellow prisoner, Rustichello da Pisa.

5 Interesting Facts about Marco Polo

1. Marco Polo was only 17 years old when he started his journey to Asia.

2. He served in the court of Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China.

3. Marco Polo’s book, “Il Milione” or “The Travels of Marco Polo,” was one of the most popular books in Europe during the Middle Ages.

4. He was captured and imprisoned by Genoa during a naval conflict, where he narrated his travels to his cellmate.

5. Marco Polo’s detailed accounts of his travels provided Europeans with a new understanding of the geography and cultures of Asia.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Marco Polo

1. “I have not told half of what I saw.”

2. “The personal appearance of the Great Khan, Lord of Lords, whose name is Kublai Khan, is such as I shall now tell you.”

3. “My heart beats as much as I speak of it, it is so wonderful a thing.”

4. “Without stones, there is no arch.”

5. “I believe it was God’s will that we should come back, so that men might know the things that are in the world.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

Marco Polo was not known for achieving significant personal wealth, and his net worth is not recorded. However, his family was wealthy, and his travels contributed to the wealth of knowledge and trade between Europe and Asia.